Flick says Barca's form drop is not normal
Hansi Flick is confident Barcelona will recover from its dip in form after the winter break, but he acknowledged the slump is "not normal".
Barca was beaten 2-1 by Atletico Madrid, with Alexander Sorloth's last-gasp goal sealing a comeback win for Diego Simeone's team.
Atleti subsequently moved three points clear of the Blaugrana at the top of LaLiga, and Barca dropped to third heading into Christmas after Real Madrid beat Sevilla 4-1.
Barca has now gone three games without a LaLiga win, picking up five points out of a possible 21, suffering home defeats to Leganes and Las Palmas prior to its loss to Atleti.
"It was unbelievable how we played. Maybe this break came at the right time," Flick said.
"I appreciate how we played. But we have to learn from these things. Losing nine points is not normal and we have to work on it.
"The points lost against Las Palmas and Leganes are in the past. We will show after the break how strong we are. We are very disappointed with the defeat, but life goes on.
"When I drive to training I am happy because I can train with these players. Now there is not a good atmosphere in the dressing room, but that's football. We will be back for sure.
"We have to build confidence and make them proud of how they play. My job is to give confidence to all the players. I'm happy with this team, it's young and has fantastic quality."
Barca certainly had its chances against Atleti, which failed to register a shot in the first half.
The Blaugrana went ahead through Pedri's 30th-minute goal, while Raphinha hit the crossbar just before Rodrigo De Paul made it 1-1, with Jan Oblak standing firm in Atleti's goal to frustrate Flick's team prior to Sorloth's sucker punch deep into stoppage-time.
Barca has now lost three consecutive home games for the third time in the history of LaLiga, after losses in October-November 1965 and September-October 1987, while it was its first home defeat to Atleti in the league since 2006.
It is not back in LaLiga action until 19 January (AEDT), when it faces Getafe.
Before then, it plays Barbastro in the Copa del Rey and take part in the Supercopa de Espana, going up against Athletic Bilbao in the semi-finals.
